In the wake of a deadly hostage standoff at a Delaware prison this month, about three dozen workers, including nurses and correctional officers, have resigned, increasing pressure on a penitentiary already struggling with staffing shortages.

A union representing Delaware prison workers has complained that top state officials haven’t done enough to address chronic prison staffing shortages. Personnel shortages at prisons are a serious challenge around the U.S., raising safety risks.

Since the incident that left one correctional officer dead at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in Smyrna, Del., 29 contract medical workers have resigned, including eight registered nurses, 11 licensed practical nurses and three nurse practitioners, said
Jayme Gravell,
a spokeswoman for the state Department of Correction.

In addition, eight correctional officers have resigned, and 10 officers—six of whom were assigned to Vaughn—have submitted their retirement paperwork, as has one teacher, Ms. Gravell said.

She noted that the department loses 11 correctional officers a month on average. “These retirements cannot be directly attributed to the hostage event in Smyrna,” she said.

A spokesman for the contractor, Connections Community Support Programs, Inc., referred questions to state corrections officials.

A mix of high prison populations and stressful working conditions make it hard to maintain adequate prison staffing around the U.S. Homicides among prison workers are relatively rare while violent injuries are more common, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prison workers accounted for one third of all violent injuries among state government workers that year, the BLS said.

In Delaware, Republican state Sen.
Dave Lawson
has proposed using overtime funds to boost pay at the Department of Correction as a way to improve recruitment and retention, after the siege earlier in the month.

He said his $15 million plan would boost staffing by 180 recruits, increase starting pay for correctional officers to $37,000 and give all existing agency employees a $4,000 raise. Correctional officers currently start at $35,180, which includes $3,120 for hazardous duty.

The Delaware State Police are conducting a criminal investigation of the siege, which began Feb. 1 when inmates took over a housing unit and ended early the next morning when a tactical team stormed the building.

Lt.
Steven Floyd,
a veteran officer posthumously promoted from sergeant, was found dead. Crews rescued a female counselor who sustained no physical injuries. Inmates had earlier released two other correctional officers who were also taken hostage.

Delaware Gov.
John Carney
last week appointed two retired judges to lead an independent commission that will examine the incident and related security issues.